2000
#5,306
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,042
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.24
Rare Last name
Pitcher
An occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of earthenware drinking and pouring vessels.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,969 Americans carry the last name Pitcher. That puts it at #5,529 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,183 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pitcher surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Pitcher with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.0K
1 in 49,183
Census rank
#5,529
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,077 bearers of the surname Pitcher in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5529th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pitcher, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.9%. The next largest groups are Black (4.4%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pitcher
The surname Pitcher is believed to have originated in England, likely during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "pycere," which referred to a maker or seller of pitch, a sticky substance obtained from the residue of tar distillation. Pitch was widely used for waterproofing and caulking ships, barrels, and roofs.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1195, which mention a William le Pychere. The name is also present in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1279, where it appears as Reginald le Pychur.
The Pitcher surname is believed to have originated in areas with a strong shipbuilding or woodworking industry, where pitch was in high demand. Places like Norfolk, Suffolk, and Kent were likely the initial strongholds of the name.
In the 14th century, the surname appeared in various spellings, including Picher, Pychere, and Pytchour, reflecting the variations in pronunciation and spelling during that time period.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Pitcher, a merchant from London who lived in the late 14th century. Another notable figure was Sir Edward Pitcher, a Member of Parliament for Sandwich, Kent, in the early 17th century.
During the English Civil War in the 17th century, a certain Robert Pitcher served as a captain in the Parliamentary forces under Oliver Cromwell. His exploits are recorded in several contemporary accounts of the conflict.
In the 18th century, the name gained prominence with the birth of Nathaniel Pitcher (1777-1836), a prominent British writer and satirist known for his biting political commentary.
Another individual of note was Henry Pitcher (1824-1895), a successful businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of his hometown of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands.
As the centuries progressed, the Pitcher surname spread across various parts of the British Isles and eventually to other regions of the world through migration and colonization.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pitcher
Among Census respondents with the surname Pitcher, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.9%. The next largest groups are Black (4.4%) and Two or More Races (3.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Pitcher bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Pitcher surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.9% · 5,282
- Black or African American4.4% · 267
- Two or more races3.9% · 236
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 213
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 58
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pitcher
Pitcher appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#5,539
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,272
+230 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 2.13
Rank movement Down 233 places
2020
#5,529
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,077
-195 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 2.03
Rank movement Up 10 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,306 | 6,042 | 2.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,539 | 6,272 | 2.13 | +230 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 233 places |
| 2020 | #5,529 | 6,077 | 2.03 | -195 bearers (-3.1%) | Up 10 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Pitcher surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #5,539 | #5,529 | 0.2% |
| Count | 6,272 | 6,077 | -3.1% |
| Per 100K | 2.13 | 2.03 | -4.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pitcher bearers went from 6,272 to 6,077 (-3.1% change). The surname moved up 10 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,539 to #5,529.
FAQ
Pitcher surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pitcher?
Name Census estimates that about 6,969 living Americans carry the surname Pitcher. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,183 residents.
How common is Pitcher?
Pitcher ranks #5,529 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,077 people with the surname Pitcher. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,969), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Pitcher.
Has Pitcher become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pitcher went from 6,272 recorded bearers to 6,077. That is a decrease of 195 (-3.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,539 to #5,529.
What does the Census say about the background of Pitcher?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pitcher, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.9%. The next largest groups are Black (4.4%) and Two or More Races (3.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Pitcher in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.9% (5,282 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pitcher appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.9%), Black (4.4%), Two or More Races (3.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Pitcher (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Pitcher mean?
An occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of earthenware drinking and pouring vessels. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Pitcher (2.03 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Pitcher?
Want to know how many people are called Pitcher? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.